Adaptive COIN in Sri Lanka: What Contributed to the Demise of the LTTE?

Abstract

The Government of Sri Lanka declared victory over the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in 2009, putting an end to a conflict of thirty years. The sudden demise of the LTTE, one of the most ruthless yet successful insurgent organizations, is worth understanding. This thesis attempts to do this by exploring the internal political dynamics, external influence on the conflict, and the Sri Lankan military's adaptations in order to determine what contributed to the demise of the LTTE. This thesis will argue that one of the most critical aspects of success for the government and its military was learning from adversity and the LTTE and adapting the political and military organizations of Sri Lanka. By becoming fast-adapting organizations, both the government as a whole and the military, in particular, managed to conduct a successful counterinsurgency campaign that eventually ended the LTTE and eliminated its leadership.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jun 01, 2012
Accession Number
ADA562729

Entities

People

  • Eranda M. Chandradasa

Organizations

  • Naval Postgraduate School

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Energy and Power Technologies
  • Human Systems
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Civil War
  • Contingency Operations (Military)
  • Department Of State
  • Employment
  • Ethnic Groups
  • Governments
  • International Law
  • Military History
  • Military Organizations
  • Military Science
  • National Governments
  • National Politics
  • Personnel Management
  • Political Systems
  • South Asia
  • Terrorists
  • Warfare

Fields of Study

  • History
  • Sociology

Readers

  • Political Violence and Terrorism Studies.
  • Virology (or Medical Virology).